Chapter 6: Reunion

Nora watched as his expression changed. Surprise and delight morphed into something more. It was a primal expression. He closed his eyes and inhaled. When they opened again, they looked like the sky during a storm. He closed the space between them and grabbed her shoulders. Her skin tingled beneath his touch, so much more intense than she remembered.

"Mine," he whispered.

"What?" Nora breathed.

"You are mine," he said.

'Yes!' her insides screamed. 'I am! All yours!' Somehow, she was able to keep a sliver of her rational mind. Did he even recognize her? She opened her mouth to ask, and she heard a gasp come from behind them.

"Dante!" Ruby and Jade chorused. "We need to talk to you."

"No," he snarled.

"Now," they implored. "Please."

He huffed and released Nora.

"Don't go anywhere," he commanded. "I'll be right back." His sisters whisked him away. Nora took a deep breath and swayed on her feet. Kai caught her and sat her in the booth next to him.

"Girl, what the hell was that?" he asked. "Are you okay?"

"It was him," she looked up at Kai.

"Him? Like, 'him' him?" Kai's eyes were wide.

"Yes."

"Your mystery dance partner is Dante muthaf*cking Silver?" Kai's hands flew to his mouth. "Dante. Silver. The Prince of Starling. Is the man you've been dreaming of?"

"I didn't know," she said, still shocked. "Did you hear what he said?"

"I hope I didn't," Kai answered.

"I think he—"

"Don't say it!" Kai tried to interrupt her.

"I think he claimed me as his mate."

"Holy shit," Kai jumped up and ran a hand through his hair.

"Is that bad?"

Kai attempted to answer but was cut short by a commotion.

"I said, I don't care!" Dante's voice thundered over the bass.

"We can't let you!" His sisters tugged at his arms, trying to hold him back. "Please! We talked about this!"

"Let me go! I need to talk to her." He wrenched himself out of their grip. He made his way to Nora and grabbed her hand. "Come with me."

Before Kai could grab her, Dante had whisked her away and she was out of Kai's reach. Nora looked back to see a concerned look on Kai's face. Ruby and Jade looked scared.

'What is going on?', she wondered.

Dante led her through the club and took her out through a side door. The sudden change from deafening music to silence was jarring. Nora felt like she was spiraling. There he was. The man she'd dreamt of for so long, right in front of her. He'd called her his, just like she always hoped. But he meant it in a way she never could have imagined. He was a werewolf. Not just any werewolf. He was Dante Silver. The next Alpha of Starling City.

He pushed her against the rough brick wall of the club's exterior and leaned over her. His breathing was uneven, like he'd been running... struggling to control himself.

"Are… are you okay?" Nora asked. A single streetlamp lit the dark alleyway. The whoosh of the passing cars, and occasional laugh from drunk, happy clubgoers was the only indicator Nora had to believe that this was really happening.

"It's taking every ounce of my self-control to not rip that dress off of you right now." His voice was strained. He leaned down to her and put his face in the crook of her neck. "You smell so f*cking good." He inhaled. His lips trailed across her skin, sending sparks all over her body. "Tell me to stop."

"I—" Nora wasn't sure she had the willpower to tell him to stop. She'd dreamt of this for so long. She longed to feel him against her, to be lost in the throes of pleasure with him. But in a dank alleyway next to a club? Not the way she expected her first time to go. But as she felt his teeth graze along her neck, all sense just about left her mind. "Holy shit." Her hands snaked up his chest and her fingers fisted his shirt. A growl rumbled in his chest, and Nora thought she would c*m just at the sound.

"If you keep doing that, I won’t be able to pull away," he warned, pressing further into her.

"Maybe I don't want you to," Nora said, looking into his eyes, surprised at her own boldness. Her fingers opened, pressed against him. She could feel his sculpted chest and longed to see it freed of its barrier. His lips crashed into hers, capturing her in a searing kiss that demolished whatever rational thought that was left in Nora's mind. He picked her up and wrapped her legs around his waist. They were an entanglement of lips and hands and tongues. Her fingers wound into his hair. She used that as leverage to pull him even closer. She tightened her legs around him, and ground against him. He moaned into her lips, and it only served to push her more.

She felt his hands on her breast through the fabric of her dress and she found herself wishing it wasn't there. The thought helped snap her back to reality. She pulled away from him.

"Wait," she panted. Dante put her down and stepped away from her. The spell was broken.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be," she said. "I wanted that every bit as much as you did. It's just—"

"Not here in an alleyway, after we've just re-met?" he smiled.

"Well, yeah… wait," she gasped as she listened to his words. "You… remember me?"

"Of course, I do." He approached her again and touched her with a gentle caress. "You're all I've thought about for the last three years."

"Why didn't you say anything?"

"I wasn't sure at first. You look different."

"I cut my hair," she smiled.

"That's too bad. I used to dream about pulling it. A lot," he said, running his fingers through Nora's cropped locks. "I like it though. It suits you. It's more than that though. I had a hard time remembering your face. Like something was trying to take it out of my memory."

'The spell,' Nora thought.

"How did you know it was me?"

"I smelled you. Your scent hasn't changed at all. You smell like lavender and sunshine," he whispered, running his finger along her cheek.

"Am I…"

"My mate?" he finished for her. "Yes." Nora buried her face in his chest. This was more than she could have hoped for.

"Did you know then?"

"No. But I wanted you to be."

"What happens now?" Nora didn't know many wolves. Most stayed out of Raven's Hollow, as they didn't seem keen on small town life. Through her research she knew mated pairs spent their lives together and developed an unbreakable bond. However, they had to accept each other.

And how she wanted to accept him as her mate. Her heart broke at the thought of not being with him. But with her still being unsure of her lineage and powers, how could they be together? How could she drag someone into her life when she didn't even know herself? Her Magic was volatile. She could feel it always bubbling right beneath the surface of her control. What would she do if she lost it and hurt him?

Dante opened his mouth to speak, but before he could get the words out, a shrill voice called out to him.

"Dante! Is that you out here?"

The heavy clomps of high-heeled shoes echoed in the alleyway as the owner of the voice approached them. Nora did her best straighten herself out.

"Who is that?" she asked.

Dante's face was a mask of irritation and regret.

"That's Leah. My fiance."